Partner
by Shadowfarters
Summary: After the loss of her father, Katniss find comfort in an unexpected partner.


**Originally written as a short story for my Englsih class but I decided to change it into an Everlark fic just cause I thought it suited. Also, this is technically my first go at writing fan fiction, so reviews would be awesome! **

The sun beating down on the Earth with an intense heat made for an abnormally warm day in late September. Usually, days like these would be amongst Katniss' favorites. She recalled memories of her and her father laughing, playing cowboys in the fields. Running around pretending she was her fathers partner and he was the Sheriff of the town.

As soon as the joy of the times came, it had vanished and was replaced with a sudden wretched feeling of sadness. Tears reached Katniss' eyes as she realized the harsh truth that those memories were now just painful stories of the past, and were to never happen again.

With a soft thud, Katniss had her back to the soft grass, her head slightly inclined as she rested it against the hard stone structure behind her. The words engraved were ones she had read hundreds of times. Jason Everdeen. Father and Partner. A Loving Friend to All. July 19th, 1913 – September 23rd, 1948.

It was now the two year anniversary of her fathers death, yet for Katniss, the pain was still as fresh as the day it happened. More tears stung her eyes as the look on Mr. Mellark's face from that day interrupted her thoughts.

Peeta Mellark was, without a doubt, her fathers best friend. Though there had been a seven year age difference between them, they were incredibly close. He and her father had worked together at Capital Lumber Ltd. in Dirstrict 12 for a little over ten years, and had developed quite a bond.

Katniss could remember the days when Mr. Mellark would come over to their house for dinner. It was usually once, sometimes twice, a week. Typically a Sunday night when Katniss and Prim had already done their homework long ago and the four of them would play card games and listen to music or sit by the fire while Peeta would tell them scary stories.

Sure, Katniss had noticed the literal bumps and bruises that came along with her father's job, but all the times she had heard him mutter jokingly that his job would be the death of him under his breath to Mr. Mellark, she did not once even consider the thought that it may have been true.

As she did every day, Katniss had walked home from school, hand in hand with Prim. Usually, they would be home for a few hours by themselves, left to do schoolwork until their father got home and Katniss would help start dinner.

The vast difference she noticed when they approached their house was that Mr. Mellark's car had been parked in the driveway. Katniss had cautiously climbed the steps to find the door unlocked. Walking into the house, she immediately noticed Peeta sitting tensely at the kitchen table with his elbows in front of him and his head hung between his hands.

Looking up to notice the girls, Mr. Mellark sullenly told them about the accident that had taken place mere hours earlier, which took the life of their father and his best friend.

For Katniss, that was one of the only time in her life that she could recall actually having a breakdown. She had never been one for crying, and had always thought herself to be a strong girl. Her mother had died while giving birth to Prim, leaving her father to look after a new baby and a five-year-old on his own. Growing up for most of her life with no mother, and with a father who worked as a logger, meant she was raised to be as tough as nails.

At eighteen, Katniss had officially taken on the role of Prim's parent and there were days when the part was just to difficult to play. Having no one working and providing for them anymore, Katniss was forced to drop out of school and get a part time job at a local diner. At nineteen and having struggled to care for herself, as well as her sister for a year, Katniss knew there was little chance of her being able to sustain them for much longer.

In those recent months, Mr. Mellark had started to visit more frequently and check in to make sure the girls were doing well. He would help Prim with homework and bring a nice dinner for them, ensuring there would be many leftovers for the next day's meals. Peeta's visits started becoming so continual that it was almost every day that he was at their house.

Around the same time, Katniss had realized a change in Mr. Mellark. He had stopped calling her by his usual nickname for her "Kitty", it was now "Katniss" or sometime "Kat". He also requested that she would stop referring to him as "Mr. Mellark" and to call him "Peeta", if she must.

The change was not only in Peeta though. Katniss started to see it in herself as well. The two of them became very close, and she had stopped seeing him as just her fathers best friend. She could not recall when, but at some point, Katniss started to consider Peeta as her other half, and could only wish he thought the same for her.

The assumptions had not long after that stopped. Along with Peeta visiting Katniss and Prim for dinner. Soon, Katniss quite her job at the diner. Her life had undoubtedly changed in a matter of months.

Wiping her eyes, Katniss got off the ground and walked away from the stone. She suddenly felt an arm encircle her waist and rest upon her right hip. Leaning into the embrace, she turned to the left, her sapphire eyes meeting the bright blue ones of Peeta.

"Are you ready to go?" He questioned her in a soft voice, as if trying not to scare her.

Katniss simply nodded, unwrapping herself from Peeta's embrace and taking his right hand in her left. Together they waked towards home, every once in a while he would give her hand a gentle squeeze, or rub his thumb over the back of her hand.

looking down at their intertwined fingers, Katniss' eyes locked onto the golden band that had rested on her forth finger for the past year and smiled. Now content, she finally found not only a best friend, but a partner who she could count on to never leave her side.


End file.
